Improving livelihoods and then seeing a village destroyed - Mission East

Mission Eastis a Danish international relief and development organisation, working in Eastern Europe and Asia. Our aim is to deliver relief aid, to create and support long-term development projects and to empower local aid organisations to carry on the work independently. Making no racial, religious or political distinction between those in need, we aim to assist the most vulnerable.

Improving livelihoods and then seeing a village destroyed

Since the end of 2008, Mission East has carried out a project in the Zerafshan Valley of Northern Tajikistan, aiming to alleviate the extreme poverty of the rural population in this isolated part of the country. The project has two overall objectives: 1) reducing the incidence of water and hygiene-related illnesses that inhibit productivity through improved low-cost, appropriate and sustainable water and sanitation services and promoting good hygiene practices; and 2) reducing the adverse effects of power outages on vulnerable populations through the introduction of alternative energy technologies.
So far, the results have been impressive, but on August 24th, a major setback was suffered when a part of the project area was hit by the worst mudslide in 80 years. Immediately, Mission East intervened and organized for two bulldozers to clear the 2.7 kilometer road leading to the area. But cleaning up the area hit by the mudflow will take a long time, and one of the prime concerns is the re-establishing of the water supply. So far, we are reducing the risk of disease by providing the inhabitants with chloramine tablets to be used with the water collected from open streams. The risk is ever there for an outbreak of typhoid, cholera or other water-borne diseases.